The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009 is to be awarded to President Barack Obama for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples. The Committee has attached special importance to Obama's vision of and work for a world without nuclear weapons.

Obama has as President created a new climate in international politics. Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play. Dialogue and negotiations are preferred as instruments for resolving even the most difficult international conflicts. The vision of a world free from nuclear arms has powerfully stimulated disarmament and arms control negotiations. Thanks to Obama's initiative, the USA is now playing a more constructive role in meeting the great climatic challenges the world is confronting. Democracy and human rights are to be strengthened.

Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future. His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population.

For 108 years, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has sought to stimulate precisely that international policy and those attitudes for which Obama is now the world's leading spokesman. The Committee endorses Obama's appeal that "Now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges."

Oslo, October 9, 2009

Product Educator | USPowdersStatements made by this online persona are the sole property of the owner, and do not necessarily reflect USPowders’ opinion as a whole.

Yeah thats sad honestly. I thought it was bad when Al Gore actually won it but this is on a whole different level. He has not been in office for 9 months yet and he has not accomplished anything, let alone something deserving of the Nobel Peace prize. This award has steadily lost merit and become a joke of an award.

He won it on his promises, nothing that he has actually done. The biggest one I grabbed was his promise to reduce nuclear threats across the globe, now we look to ahkmedinijad, and his threatening Israel.

He won it on his promises, nothing that he has actually done. The biggest one I grabbed was his promise to reduce nuclear threats across the globe, now we look to ahkmedinijad, and his threatening Israel.

Yeah hopefully he acts soon but I really dont know what he is willing to do about it. Either way I bet Israel strikes first and probably relatively soon

This is ridiculous. The nobel peace prize has now lost all meaning and prestige. If he was so great of a wglobal spokesman...then why is he not able to come to the rescue of our troops in afghanistan where our military leaders are demanding for the extra troops for support, but he will not come thru....So doesnt this award and his lack of support for our troops kind of containdict each other. I think he really feels that he will be the leader of the world....We should look into the stimulus budget just to make sure that the norwegian govt did not recieve several billions of dollars for a nobel peace commitee and to fix sqeaking doors. This will definitely fuel the fire and give more momemtum for another stimulus package...wich by the way, our vice president has stated that he never dream that the first one would ever have been so successful and impacting so quickly... Get ready for rocket scienctist brain surgreons and truck stop janitors to make the same money....Even Moore says it in his movie..Obama is a socialist....

Stimulus Part 3 (Or 4 if you want to could the 600 bones in our tax return 2 years ago) is well in the works... my daughter is already 39K in debt and she is only 6 months old.

Personally, I thought it was not entirely inconceivable that he would receive the award at all. What I was not prepared for was the timing. As a matter of fact, I had to go to the Nobel Foundation's website to confirm the authenticity of the report. I had thought he would deserve the prize further down the road, if he managed to successfully moderate the peace process in the Middle East, for example. As a consequence, I thought the 2009 award for him was somewhat premature, but who am I?

Product Educator | USPowdersStatements made by this online persona are the sole property of the owner, and do not necessarily reflect USPowders’ opinion as a whole.

Personally, I thought it was not entirely inconceivable that he would receive the award at all. What I was not prepared for was the timing. As a matter of fact, I had to go to the Nobel Foundation's website to confirm the authenticity of the report. I had thought he would deserve the prize further down the road, if he managed to successfully moderate the peace process in the Middle East, for example. As a consequence, I thought the 2009 award for him was somewhat premature, but who am I?

Agreed... No peace has been established, and threatening Israel if they attack Iran is not establishing real peace. If in 5 years down the road it was his work and peace has been attained... then sure, the guy deserves it. Having the idea of peace in your mind should not warrant you award. Otherwise every hippy in this country would have that damn award.

Yeah...how many other leaders do you know of that has ever been referred to as "our son" by every major terrorist driven muslim leader in the world...?

This is all I will say: It's called Propaganda. Our enemies (which I know very well) would do and say anything to have the masses turn against our own leader. Now, regardless if you like the man, or if you disagree with his policies/propositions, NO leader can be effective if his own people are pointing fingers at him and listening to the enemies ideology of him. Stop playing in to their (terrorist) hands.

This is all I will say: It's called Propaganda. Our enemies (which I know very well) would do and say anything to have the masses turn against our own leader. Now, regardless if you like the man, or if you disagree with his policies/propositions, NO leader can be effective if his own people are pointing fingers at him and listening to the enemies ideology of him. Stop playing in to their (terrorist) hands....

This is all I will say: It's called Propaganda. Our enemies (which I know very well) would do and say anything to have the masses turn against our own leader. Now, regardless if you like the man, or if you disagree with his policies/propositions, NO leader can be effective if his own people are pointing fingers at him and listening to the enemies ideology of him. Stop playing in to their (terrorist) hands.

/I'm out.

Eh.. I agree but disagree. I personally am sickened by people who validate their argument by siding with ahkmadenijah or that **** bastard chavez. I dont like Obamas policies, bar none, and would even welcome a peaceful revolution in Washington, and am a advocate of speaking out against your leader if you do not agree, just not to the side of our enemies.

Eh.. I agree but disagree. I personally am sickened by people who validate their argument by siding with ahkmadenijah or that **** bastard chavez. I dont like Obamas policies, bar none, and would even welcome a peaceful revolution in Washington, and am a advocate of speaking out against your leader if you do not agree, just not to the side of our enemies.

One would think that the cold war ending Ronald Regan would have at least been considered over someone with a good idea. "By their fruits ye shall know them"... or did I read that wrong. Regardless of whether or not one supports the man, one would have to agree that the award being thus given is an embarrassment to the Nobel establishment as a whole. The president should have done the honorable thing and taken his name out of the running. Then again..., there is that little word again... honor.

Yeah I fist wana say congradulations to lebron james for winning the championship next year and being 2010 mvp....I mean he said he was gona do it so why no reward him now...who cares if he does it, it is the promise and hope that he said he would..I mean obama had two weeks in the office and in his two weeks of talking out his a** through a telepromptor he was worthy of the nobel peace prize. I just dnt know how he pulled it off...really...there were great competitors in the field who had spoke of what ifs and what that of a greater magnitude....The first one garanteed a cure for cancer and aids by winter of next year, the second told stories of dreams he had of ending global warming by 2011, the third hinted but a wisper about an aerosal nuclear vaporizer that incenagrate any nuclear missle within 15 feet. And not to mention the darkhorse of the competetion whos promises and ideas were so genious and world effective, that he couldnt even speak of it...all he could tell us was that hope and change were on the horizon.......

That was a close, but prestigeous win for obama barely edging out the rest of the field.

I think we should take a step back and focus on this issue as objectively as we can, if that is possible.

First, the fact that he was only about two weeks in office before the nominations ended is, in my opinion, completely irrelevant. The deadline had already been fixed before Mr. Obama even won the presidential elections! Furthermore, he did not (and could not) nominate himself for the award. It might interest some of us to know there were about 205 nominees for the award, including Stalin! For those who care, nominations come from the following:

Qualified Nominators

The right to submit proposals for the Nobel Peace Prize shall, by statute, be enjoyed by:

1. Members of national assemblies and governments of states;
2. Members of international courts;
3. University rectors; professors of social sciences, history, philosophy, law and theology; directors of peace research institutes and foreign policy institutes;
4. Persons who have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize;
5. Board members of organizations who have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize;
6. Active and former members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee; (proposals by members of the Committee to be submitted no later than at the first meeting of the Committee after February 1) and
7. Former advisers appointed by the Norwegian Nobel Institute.

The Nobel Peace Prize may also be awarded to institutions and associations.

And, again, for those who care, the selection process works like this:

Below is a brief description of the process involved in selecting the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates.

September – Invitation letters are sent out. The Nobel Committee sends out invitation letters to individuals qualified to nominate – members of national assemblies, governments, and international courts of law; university chancellors, professors of social science, history, philosophy, law and theology; leaders of peace research institutes and institutes of foreign affairs; previous Nobel Peace Prize Laureates; board members of organizations that have received the Nobel Peace Prize; present and past members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee; and former advisers of the Norwegian Nobel Institute.

February – Deadline for submission. The Committee bases its assessment on nominations that must be postmarked no later than 1 February each year. Nominations postmarked and received after this date are included in the following year's discussions. In recent years, the Committee has received close to 200 different nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize. The number of nominating letters is much higher, as many are for the same candidates.

February-March – Short list. The Committee assesses the candidates' work and prepares a short list.

March-August – Adviser review. The short list is reviewed by permanent advisers and advisers specially recruited for their knowledge of specific candidates. The advisers do not directly evaluate nominations nor give explicit recommendations.

October – Nobel Laureates are chosen. At the beginning of October, the Nobel Committee chooses the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates through a majority vote. The decision is final and without appeal. The names of the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates are then announced.

December – Nobel Laureates receive their prize. The Nobel Peace Prize Award Ceremony takes place on 10 December in Oslo, Norway, where the Nobel Laureates receive their Nobel Prize, which consists of a Nobel Medal and Diploma, and a document confirming the prize amount.

Second, Mr. Obama himself acknowledged he did not think he deserved (yet) to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the earlier recepients that he looked up to as role models. He also reiterated he did not think he was awarded the Prize for any personal (or public) accomplishment (in the sense of a completed process with a specific result or outcome). And this is important. Anyone that understands the workings of the Nobel Peace Prize selection process would admit that it is not always awarded for any specific achievement. Sometimes, the selection committee uses the Prize to make a statement; to stimulate a particular line of dialogue; to influence action in a particular direction; to build momentum for a specific cause. For example, Nobel Committee awarded Peace Prize for 1996 to Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo and José Ramos-Horta "for their work towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict in East Timor". At the time, the peace process in East Timor was still in progress, and as we now know, was not brought to a fruitful conclusion. Another example, Aung San Suu Kyi received the Peace Prize in 1991 "for her non-violent struggle for democracy and human rights". To this day, there still is no democracy in Burma (Myanmar). And so on.

So, in such cases, with its awards, the Nobel Committee is making a bet, so to say. It awards the Prize to stimulate, encourage, motivate, and influence a cause or process. To be fair, though, the Committee believes Mr. Obama has already triggered a subtle change in the conduct of international relations, especially in terms of a preference for dialogue, consensus, and partnership, and jettisoning of the confrontational approach to international policy. The key part of the award citation is: "for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples".

Third, part of Mr. Alfred B. Nobel's conditions for the Peace-Prize award include promoting fraternity among nations, stimulating international peace congresses, and so on. The awarding committee is of the opinion that awarding the Prize to Mr. Obama is in tune with these requirements or ideals, especially in terms of Mr. Obama's erstwhile efforts at promoting these ideals.

Overall, in my opinion, the award to Mr. Obama will be historically validated, if it ultimately helps to improve fraternity among nations.

Product Educator | USPowdersStatements made by this online persona are the sole property of the owner, and do not necessarily reflect USPowders’ opinion as a whole.

This is just my opinion but.......I didn't agree at all with Obama getting elected the way he did because I felt like the media was the driving force behind his campaign just because a black president elect headline gets better ratings than a McCain wins election headline, BUT THIS IS AMERICA. At first glance, I didn't feel like Obama deserved the Nobel Peace Prize but I didn't know what all the factors were that went into that process either and frankly I didn't care. The fact of the matter is, in my opinion, whether we like it or not, he is our elected leader and we should all just be happy that our nations leader has won something as prestigious as the Nobel Peace prize and be supportive of him. It wasn't his choice to win the thing in the first place. He represents us ALL (whether we like it or not) to the rest of the world. Ironlungs is right, we have to support this guy or else we're screwed.
And just so everyone knows, I didn't vote for Obama, I thought the presidential race was sickening and a joke (also kinda scary), I'm not a "democrat" or even into politics for that matter, and I haven't heard anything that Obama has said that would convince me that he is going to be able to change anything, BUT HE IS OUR PRESIDENT WHETHER WE LIKE IT OR NOTand that is not going to change for years (barring something horrible) and the better he does, theoretically, the better that we will do. We really need to pull together guys.

This is just my opinion but.......I didn't agree at all with Obama getting elected the way he did because I felt like the media was the driving force behind his campaign just because a black president elect headline gets better ratings than a McCain wins election headline, BUT THIS IS AMERICA. At first glance, I didn't feel like Obama deserved the Nobel Peace Prize but I didn't know what all the factors were that went into that process either and frankly I didn't care. The fact of the matter is, in my opinion, whether we like it or not, he is our elected leader and we should all just be happy that our nations leader has won something as prestigious as the Nobel Peace prize and be supportive of him. It wasn't his choice to win the thing in the first place. He represents us ALL (whether we like it or not) to the rest of the world. Ironlungs is right, we have to support this guy or else we're screwed.
And just so everyone knows, I didn't vote for Obama, I thought the presidential race was sickening and a joke (also kinda scary), I'm not a "democrat" or even into politics for that matter, and I haven't heard anything that Obama has said that would convince me that he is going to be able to change anything, BUT HE IS OUR PRESIDENT WHETHER WE LIKE IT OR NOTand that is not going to change for years (barring something horrible) and the better he does, theoretically, the better that we will do. We really need to pull together guys.

Whatever happened to dissenters being the highest form of patriots? Now that the tables are turned, dissenters are considered on par with terrorists by some.

Marred by being guilted into doing so. Though I am sure the 10% of reported unemployed in America would probably wish Mr. President would refocus on something withing America.

He certainly was not guilty of this "distraction". He was awarded the prize; he did not focus on getting it. In terms of the unemployment in the USA, as elsewhere, it is a problem that does not disappear overnight. Monthly non-farm payroll losses are now, on average, lower than in the last months of the previous administration. While that is no consolation for the unemployed, it signals the emergence of some economic recovery.

Product Educator | USPowdersStatements made by this online persona are the sole property of the owner, and do not necessarily reflect USPowders’ opinion as a whole.

He certainly was not guilty of this "distraction". He was awarded the prize; he did not focus on getting it. In terms of the unemployment in the USA, as elsewhere, it is a problem that does not disappear overnight. Monthly non-farm payroll losses are now, on average, lower than in the last months of the previous administration. While that is no consolation for the unemployed, it signals the emergence of some economic recovery.

I mean recerting his views to America. I think that point got lost in typed text.

As for unemployment in the US.. we here in the USA has been put in drastically more debt because of TARP, with promises of unemployment not rising above 8%.. that was 2% ago, as for recovery, even Obama friendly economists are disagreeing with the recovery signals. There are too many that seem to be conflicting to say one way or another... housing prices is most areas saw a 2 month increase, people were claiming the recession was over, then last month dropped a sharp double digit percentage. No something does not happen overnight, I do not disagree with you, but do not make promises to the people that you cannot keep. This award was given to the president on promises... and his track record is less than spectacular on his promises.

I mean recerting his views to America. I think that point got lost in typed text.

As for unemployment in the US.. we here in the USA has been put in drastically more debt because of TARP, with promises of unemployment not rising above 8%.. that was 2% ago, as for recovery, even Obama friendly economists are disagreeing with the recovery signals. There are too many that seem to be conflicting to say one way or another... housing prices is most areas saw a 2 month increase, people were claiming the recession was over, then last month dropped a sharp double digit percentage. No something does not happen overnight, I do not disagree with you, but do not make promises to the people that you cannot keep. This award was given to the president on promises... and his track record is less than spectacular on his promises.

Cut the guy some slack! He's not even one year in office yet. If he were a dictator, he could introduce policies at will. But the US is a democratic society, so even well-intended policies may take time to become law, if at all. We all know this. Perhaps we should give him another year before we take stock!

Product Educator | USPowdersStatements made by this online persona are the sole property of the owner, and do not necessarily reflect USPowders’ opinion as a whole.

Well hopefully this award doesnt lube up congress so he can ram his obamacare through.

Also when we speak of things like supporting our president reguardless..does anyone not remember and has forgotten the speach the great obama made concerning our nations economic status, debt and future...He directly stated that the american dream is over and lost for this generation of citizens and it is our responsibility to sacrifice and endure so that our grandchildren do have to be born into poverty....Now that doesnt sound like his campaign promise and agenda.. what happened....What about all the children being born and raised in poverty now? And obama wants to be a dictator so he can do what he wants without question...Isnt that what socialist radical liberal leaders do in their countries... The world is playing intoi obamas hands because they know if he does what he wants then he will single handedly bring down the USA..look what he has done to the value of the dollar on the foreign currency exchange with his stimulus and spending...we are running on chinas money invested in america, and as soon they pull out we will crumble...they are already talking about no longer using the american dollar as the foriegn trade currency world wide because now the dollar is so weak...Chavez has already publicly stated that under obamas leadership that by the end of 2010 the USA will crumble. The majority of world leaders think obama is a joke and especially for accepting the NPP, and they all say that the award has lost its value and notariaty and lessons the others winners of the awards prestige.

I am not quite sure, if you intended this post to be taken seriously.

1) How can Mr. Obama or any other President be a dictator in the US, given its current executive, legislative, and judicial structure?
2) Take even a cursory look at the historical evolution of the US dollar in the months preceding the Obama administration, and see if your comment is valid.
I find it funny that a lot of critics of Mr. Obama's approach to stabilizing and re-stimlating the economy are unable to provide valid and viable alternative options. Given the state of the economy before he took over, his choice set was extremely limited.
3) Most international leaders consider Mr. Obama a "joke"? Are you serious?
4) Tell me exactly what President Obama would gain, if he succeeded in "crumbling" the USA, to use your term.

Whatever happened to dissenters being the highest form of patriots? Now that the tables are turned, dissenters are considered on par with terrorists by some.

Well, after looking at how many people were identified as non American during the initial war start-up with Bush as president, there have been no real table turning. Just whatever can be used by opposing parties to make the other look like the bad guy. Dems and repubs are no different in this aspect.

Marred by being guilted into doing so. Though I am sure the 10% of reported unemployed in America would probably wish Mr. President would refocus on something withing America.

Agreed. There are A LOT of domestic issues that need to be addressed by this administration.

Originally Posted by DAdams91982

Whatever happened to dissenters being the highest form of patriots? Now that the tables are turned, dissenters are considered on par with terrorists by some.

I don't consider people that disagree with the status quo or Obama as terrorists. Just people with different opinions. Exactly what the country was founded on. However, when we are trashing a man that represents us all to a great extent for winning an award that he didn't ask to win it does make us look weak and divided (which, judging by this post, we are). At this point in time in our country I wish that we could change that.

Originally Posted by DAdams91982

This award was given to the president on promises... and his track record is less than spectacular on his promises.

Agreed, but he hasn't been in office a full year yet. The changes are going to take time.

Originally Posted by strategicmove

Cut the guy some slack! He's not even one year in office yet. If he were a dictator, he could introduce policies at will. But the US is a democratic society, so even well-intended policies may take time to become law, if at all. We all know this. Perhaps we should give him another year before we take stock!

Great point.

Originally Posted by Chucke

As of now, the Nobel Peace Prize = Total BS. It's completely lost it's meaning and purpose. You might as well call it the Mickey Mouse Club Prize.
There are a lot of great people that have won that award that would take offense to that statement. As discussed earlier, you don't neccessarily win the NPP for accomplishments. I didn't even realize that before this topic came up, but after reading the thread, I guess he's fallen within the parameters to be awarded the honor and we should all fell proud as a country that our national leader has been recognized. Especially with the things going on over seas.
If Obama had VERY politely refused the award he would have gained a little respect from both sides of the aisle.

Again agreed. But I guarantee you that if he had done that people would be talking junk about that to and how Obama has no class blah, blah, blah.
I didn't vote for this guy, think his campaign was 100% media hype, etc. But the topic of him winning the Nobel Peace Prize and Americans twisting it into what some are twisting it into is sad. Really sad.